Not Applicable
Not Applicable
Not Applicable
The present invention relates to the field of towel-hanging racks, more specifically, a towel rack that is wall-mounted, and is adapted to support a plurality of differently-sized towels simultaneously.
Towel racks are used to support one or more towels. Traditional towel racks feature a bar that enables at least one towel to be hung there from. However, these types of towel racks do not enable a wet towel to be free to hang in an unfolded position in order to dry. This can be problematic in wet or moist environments, such as adjacent a shower.
What is needed and is accomplished via the device of the present disclosure is a towel rack that can extend outwardly to enable a towel to hang in an unfolded position so as to enable access to air in order to fully dry said towel.
The wall-mounted towel rack is a device adapted to be mounted on a vertical surface, and which is also adapted to support a plurality of towels thereon. The wall-mounted towel rack includes a plurality of armatures that are pivotably engaged with respect to a mounting member. The plurality of armatures is each attached to and is perpendicularly-engaged with respect to the mounting member. Moreover, the plurality of armatures is each able to extend and retract an armature length in order to support towels of varying sizes. An armature hinge attaches between the mounting member and one of the plurality of armatures. The armature hinge enables the one of the plurality of armatures to rotate from a vertical orientation to a horizontal orientation. Moreover, a release linkage and release button are included, and used to lock the one of the plurality of armatures at the horizontal orientation when in use or to enable the one of the plurality of armatures to rotate downwardly to the vertical orientation when not in use.
It is an object of the invention to provide a device that is adapted to be mounted on a vertical surface, and which is also adapted to support one or more towels thereon.
It is a further object of the invention to provide an armature that is able to pivot from a vertical orientation when not in use, to a horizontal orientation when in use in supporting a towel thereon.
It is a further object of the invention to provide an armature that is able to extend or retract an armature length in order to support a towel of varying size.
This together with additional objects, features, and advantages of the wall-mounted towel rack will be readily apparent to those of ordinary skill in the art upon reading the following detailed description of the presently preferred, but nonetheless illustrative, embodiments when taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings.
In this respect, before explaining the current embodiments of the wall-mounted towel rack in detail, it is to be understood that the Wall-mounted towel rack is not limited in its applications to the details of construction and arrangements of the components set forth in the following description or illustration. Those skilled in the art will appreciate that the concept of this disclosure may be readily utilized as a basis for the design of other structures, methods, and systems for carrying out the several purposes of the wall-mounted towel rack.
It is therefore important that the claims be regarded as including such equivalent construction insofar as they do not depart from the spirit and scope of the wall-mounted towel rack. It is also to be understood that the phraseology and terminology employed herein are for purposes of description and should not be regarded as limiting.
The accompanying drawings, which are included to provide a further understanding of the invention are incorporated in and constitute a part of this specification, illustrate an embodiment of the invention and together with the description serve to explain the principles of the invention. They are meant to be exemplary illustrations provided to enable persons skilled in the art to practice the disclosure and are not intended to limit the scope of the appended claims.
The following detailed description is merely exemplary in nature and is not intended to limit the described embodiments of the application and uses of the described embodiments. As used herein, the word “exemplary” or “illustrative” means “serving as an example, instance, or illustration.” Any implementation described herein as “exemplary” or “illustrative” is not necessarily to be construed as preferred or advantageous over other implementations. All of the implementations described below are exemplary implementations provided to enable persons skilled in the art to practice the disclosure and are not intended to limit the scope of the appended claims. Furthermore, there is no intention to be bound by any expressed or implied theory presented in the preceding technical field, background, brief summary or the following detailed description.
Detailed reference will now be made to a first potential embodiment of the disclosure, which is illustrated in
The mounting member 101 includes at least one mounting hole 104 through which a fastener 105 is used to secure the mounting member 101 against the vertical surface 200. The fastener 105 comprises a bolt, screw, or nail. The first surface 102 is affixed to a plurality of armatures 106. The plurality of armatures 106 is adapted to support a towel 300 thereon.
The plurality of armatures 106 is individually affixed to the first surface 102 of the mounting member 101. Moreover, an armature hinge 107 is used to connect the mounting member 101 to each of the plurality of armatures 106. The plurality of armatures 106 is able to rotate from a vertical orientation to a horizontal orientation, and vice versa. The plurality of armatures 106 is perpendicularly-oriented with respect to the mounting member 101.
The armature hinge 107 is rigidly affixed to the first surface 102 of the mounting member 101, and enables one of the plurality of armatures 106 to rotate from a vertical orientation (see
The armature hinge 107 is a vertically-oriented object that is constructed of a “C” channel member. The one of the plurality of armatures 106 is affixed to an armature plate 108. The armature plate 108 is located at a first armature end 109, and is affixed to and rotates with respect to the armature hinge 107 via a pivot pin 110. The armature plate 108 enables a linkage member 112 to slide there against in order to support the armature plate 108 at a perpendicular orientation with respect to the armature hinge 107. The linkage member 112 is attached to the armature hinge 107 at a second pivot pin 113. The armature plate 108 is further defined with a linkage notch 114 that interacts with a third distal end 165 of the linkage member 112. The third distal end 165 of the linkage member 112 secures the linkage member 112 at an acute orientation with respect to the armature plate 108.
The linkage member 112 is affixed to a second linkage member 115. The second linkage member 115 extends to a fourth pivot pin 116. The fourth pivot pin 116 is rotatably engaged with respect to the armature plate 108. A release tab 117 is provided to rotate the second linkage member 115 at the fourth pivot pin 116, which in turn rotates the linkage member 112 at the third distal end 165 thereby disengaging the linkage member 112 with respect to the linkage notch 114 of the armature plate 108, and which enables the armature plate 108 to rotate from a horizontal position (see
The linkage member 112 is biased via a linkage spring 111. The linkage spring 111 is affixed between the linkage member 112 and the pivot pin 110. The linkage spring 111 ensures that the linkage member 112 does not simply rotate downwardly and become completely disengaged with the armature plate 108. Also, the linkage member 112 is pivotably affixed to the armature hinge 107 via the second pivot pin 113.
The plurality of armatures 106 is each further defined with a cavity 118, which extends across an armature length 119. The cavity 118 enables a second armature member 120 to slide back and forth with respect to the one of the plurality of armatures 106 in order to adjust the armature length 119. The second armature member 120 is further defined with a tip member 121 located at an armature distal end 122. The second armature member 120 is able to be secured at various locales with respect to the one of the plurality of armatures 106 via a locking knob 123.
The one of the plurality of armatures 106 includes a collar member 124 that includes a threaded hole 125 there under. The collar member 124 enables a threaded member 126 of the locking knob 123 to screw in or out in order to lock or unlock the second armature member 120 with respect to the one of the plurality of armatures 106. The locking knob 123 is located adjacent an armature distal end 177 of each of the plurality of armatures 106.
In use, the invention 100 is adapted to support a plurality of towels 300 on the plurality of armatures 106. Moreover, the second armature member 120 is able to extend or retract with respect to the one of the plurality of armatures 106 in order to adjust the armature length 119. The adjustment of the armature length 119 enables the towel 300 to be of varying sizes. The plurality of armatures 106 are also able to rotate from a horizontal orientation to a vertical orientation, when no longer needed.
With respect to the above description, it is to be realized that the optimum dimensional relationship for the various components of the invention described above and in
Is shall be noted that those skilled in the art will readily recognize numerous adaptations and modifications which can be made to the various embodiments of the present invention which will result in an improved invention, yet all of which will fall within the spirit and scope of the present invention as defined in the following claims. Accordingly, the invention is to be limited only by the scope of the following claims and their equivalents.
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